Bucoda mayor warns city may no longer be able to continue financially supporting 'Boo-Coda Spook-Tacular,' other events amid liability concerns
May 18-While the full council was not there, a quorum was still present at the Bucoda Town Council, which met at the Bucoda Community Center on May 12.
Councilors Steven Lyle, Laura Wilson and John Wood were present, and Councilors Miriam Gordon and Kevin Jones were excused from the meeting.
The meeting came after Bucoda Mayor Callie Carpenter and other town staff attended the Tenino City Council meeting last month to ask for a letter of support for feasibility studies looking into extending both the Yelm-Rainier-Tenino Trail to connect to Bucoda along with the City of Tenino's sewer line.
At the May 12 meeting, Carpenter clarified, especially when it came to the sewer line proposal, that no decision to move forward with the project had been made, and staff were working on the feasibility studies completed to explore possible funding options.
While they did get the support of the Tenino City Council, Carpenter stated they still had to talk with Thurston County officials and representatives of the surrounding local Tribes.
She added if any one of these agencies expresses opposition, the feasibility studies will no longer go forward.
"If one or all are not willing, there's no point in looking for funding for this project in the first place," Carpenter said.
Last month, Carpenter told the Tenino council the reason behind wanting to connect to Tenino's sewer system was to try to lessen the biological and ecological hazards created when the Skookumchuck River floods and water makes it to residents' septic tanks.
With Bucoda being a small, rural south Thurston County community, Carpenter explained the sewer line could be an additional source of revenue for the town.
"I think it's irresponsible to not pursue it and see what the opportunities are," she said.
Events discussion
Lack of funds isn't the only issue the city is facing, as Carpenter added the Association of Washington Cities (AWC) Risk Management Agency officials have stated the Town of Bucoda is currently not in compliance when it comes to liability forms and coverage for the town's official sponsorship of multiple items.
These include the annual "Boo-Coda Spook-Tacular" Halloween celebration, open gym time at the Bucoda Gym and the community garden next to the community center.
"There would also be additional fees for the coverage of these things," Carpenter said. "Whether it's the open gym, someone goes, they get hurt, or in the garden and someone gets hurt - rules aren't posted. The 'Boo-Coda' events, the casket races, a rock gets flicked up, hits someone in the forehead. Or, as Councilor Wood had pointed out, one of the tents falls down, hurts someone, all liability which could be brought up against the town."
She added an AWC agent had given her "very detailed list" the AWC wanted to see Bucoda staff doing. However, Carpenter was not sure how much more the city's insurance premium would increase if it maintained its current sponsorship of all Boo-Coda events on top of still running and maintaining the gym and community garden.
Carpenter also talked with Bucoda Town Attorney Marrisa Jay and Thurston Economic Development Council Rural Program Manager George Sharp, who leads efforts to organize Boo-Coda every year.
"My recommendation, and while it is a hard decision to make, what I think is going to be best for the town, is to not bring on any liability that we're not sure (about) the additional fees it's going to cost," Carpenter said.
With town staff focused on keeping Bucoda clean and working on the streets, Carpenter said she didn't want to add to their workload with events that exposed the town to liability lawsuits.
"We've done this for a really long time. It hasn't been insured for a really long time ... Now that we're holding people accountable and leveling up as a town, I really want to stay focused on that and get off the three priorities, which is code enforcement and cleaning up the town, standard operating procedures, and getting grants," Carpenter said.
As alcohol is sold and consumed at Boo-Coda, Jay recommended no longer sponsoring it, along with creating a special event permitting process. She also recommended possibly getting a local nonprofit such as the Bucoda Improvement Club to take over the event's primary sponsorship, as is done with many other annual festivals.
For example, the Mossyrock Area Action League runs the Mossyrock Blueberry Festival, the Toledo Lions Club handles Toledo Cheese Days, the Onalaska Alliance runs the Apple Harvest Festival and the Tenino Area Chamber of Commerce sponsors Tenino Oregon Trail Days.
Sharp, a longtime Boo-Coda organizer, said he would be dissapointed if the town ended its sponsorship of the event, but he would still support the council no matter what it decides to do.
Because Councilors Gordon and Jones were absent at the meeting, the rest of the council moved to table voting on whether or not to continue sponsoring Boo-Coda, along with open gym days and the community garden, to their next meeting scheduled for Tuesday, June 9.
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.